Removable contactor connection plug



p 1953 D. INGALLS ET AL REMOVABLE CONTACTOR CONNECTION PLUG Filed Jan. 6, 1950 v INVENTORS: MJ,%} 4

Patented Sept. 15, 1953 REMOVABLE CONTACTOR CONNECTION PLUG David Ingalls, Mountainside, and John Wallen Anderson, Westfield, N. J assignors to Airtron, 1nc., Linden, N. J a corporation of New Jersey Application January 6, 1950, Serial No. 137,192

9 Claims. .1 V

This invention relates to improvements in connection plugs and is particularly useful in such plugs having several contactors permanently associated with the plug and one or more contactors which may readily "be associated with or disassociated from the plug as desired.

The term contactors is employed herein for convenience as referring to any pin, sleeve or other conducting element which may be held within a connection plug in condition for conducting connection with an extraneous conducting element which may for example be associated with a mating connection plug. The said term also includes adjacent portions of wires soldered or otherwise connected with such conducting elements.

It has been found convenient, in many instances where multi-contactor electric connection plugs are employed, to provide for the plug to accommodate one or'more special removablecontactors therethrough for wires which may have some special purpose as, for example, for use as thermocouple wires. Where such special contactors are provided'in the plug, however, it is sometimes desired to use the plug without such removable connections. Some dirficu'lty has been encountered, however, in constructing such a plug in which the removable contactors are read- 5 ily removable and yet are rigidly held when associated with the plug.

It is, therefore, an important object of this invention to provide an improved connection plug wherein a certain contactor or contactors theresuch a plug, of means whereby plural readily removable contactors may be associated unitarily with the plug or may be disassociated unitarily therefrom rather than having to be incorporated into and removed from the plug individually.

Another important object is the provision of a connection plug in which a readily removable contactor or contactors may be associated with or disassociated from the plug without removing or disconnecting other contactors therefrom.

The foregoing objects and other advantages are derived fromthe present invention, in a broad sense by providing that the removable contactors may be frictionally held within suitably dimensioned rooves in a contactor holding plug or body of materialwhich is sufficiently yieldable to enable a removable contactor to be held tightly within its groo'e against either lateral or longitudinal displacement and yet be capable of being quickly snapped into or out of the groove. Permanent contactors may be embedded or otherwise fixed within the same contactor holding plug which holds the removable contactors Or they may be fixed within a separate 1 contactor holding plug, the latter arrangement yielding certain additional advantages as hereinafter explained.

Three of various possible embodiments of the present invention have been shown, for illustrative purposes, in the accompanying drawing in which:

Fig. 1 is a side elevational view of a multicontactor connection plug according tothe present invention, partly broken away to show certain parts in approximately central longitudinal section, the departure from the central section being indicated by the irregular line |-l in Fig. 3.

Fig. 2 is a perspective exploded View of a connection lug of the character illustrated in Fig. 1.

Fig. 3 is an end elevational view of a removable-contactor holding body in the form of a ring for holding two readily removable contactors in a device according to the embodiment of the present invention illustrated in Figs. 1 and 2; the said contactors and several fixed contactors being shown in cross-section to show the manner in which they are accommodated by the mentioned ring.

Fig. 4 is a view substantially like Fig. 3., but showing a modified form of ring for holding two readily removable contactors.

Fig. 5 is a side elevational view of a supplemental ring or washer for use in association with the ringillustrated in Fig. 4.

Fig. 6 is a perspective exploded view of certain parts of a further modification of the invention in which the plug which holds the fixed contactors also includes means for frictionally holding the readily removable contactors; this view omitting the shell and locking means of the device, but including a ring or washer adapted to complement the contactor holding ring.

The embodiment illustrated in Figs. 1-3 inclusive includes a substantially cylindrical mounting shell 5 I having a mountin flange l2 provided with suitable screw holes 13 by which the shell may be secured to a panel M. One end of the shell is threaded as at IE; to receive a cup-shaped, knurled locking nut it which serves to hold together as a unit the various plug. portions hereinaiter described. The other end of the shell may also be threaded as'at ii to receive a suitable coupling nut (not shown) bywhich a mating 3 plug (not shown) may be held in connected association with the plug which embodies the present invention.

Within the shell II, a fixed-contactor holding body in the form of a cylindrical main plug l8 of dielectric, and preferably molded material may have a plurality of fixed contactors I9 firmly embedded therewithin and extending axially ther through from the front end of the plug to the back end thereof where connection portions I911 of said contact members may receive wires 20, the ends of which may be fixed to the connection portions of the contactors by soldering or other suitable means.

As the parts appear in Figs. 1 and 2, the plug I8 which is insertable into the shell II from the right end thereof bears at its left end against an annular shoulder 2| in the shell and is locked in place thereagainst by a locking ring 22 which snaps into an annular groove 23 in the shell. The inside of the shell and the outside of the plug I8 are respectively provided with an axially extending rib 23 and an axially extending groove 25 to prevent rotation of said plug within the shell. A notch 26 in the right end of the shell, in axial alignment with the rib 24, aids in locating the said rib and the groove 25 in axial alignment when the device is being assembled; and the said notch is useful also in aiding in the removal of the locking ring 22 if it should ever be desired to entirely disassemble the device.

It may be observed that the plug I8, in the embodiment illustrated in Figs. 1-3, is provided with two axially extending passages 21, 28 for permitting the sliding extension therethrough of two readily removable contactors 29, 33 which respectively are formed with somewhat thickened mounting portions 3!, 32. Ordinarily, the several contactors 29, 30 have portions at or adjacent to their mounting portions which are of different shapes or of different cross-sectional dimensions and each of the passages 21, 28 is complementally shaped with respect to one only of the said contactors so as to assure that the latter will be associated with their proper passages in the plug.

A removable-contactor holding body in the form of a ring 33, which may conveniently be molded of dielectric material such as phenolic resin or other suitable molded material, is formed with a relatively large axial opening or passage 3 for loosely accommodating therewithin the several wires 23 which are connected to the fixed contactors. The passage 34 includes one or more axially extending, removable-contactor holding grooves opening at one side thereof into the said passage. As the embodiment illustrated in Figs. 1-3 includes or provides for two readily removable contactors 29, 33, two grooves 35 are provided therein.

The mounting portions 3I, 32 of the two removable contactors are each formed with an annular groove 33 which is only slightly longer than the thickness of the ring 33, and the mounting portion, at the bottom of said groove in each contactor, is of a thickness corresponding approximately to the diameter of a particular groove 35 with which that contactor is to be associated. The grooves 35 are formed with axially extending side openings, each of which, preferably, but not necessarily, is slightly narrower than the mentioned thickness of an associated contactor 29 or 30, at the latters groove 36. With the parts thus dimensioned, a contactor 29 or 30 can readily be fixedly associated with the ring 33 by extending it into the opening 34 sufficiently to bring its groove 36 into radial alignment with the said ring after which the said contactor may be moved laterally outwardly to bring the grooved part of its mounting portion into the groove 35 with which it is intended to be associated.

Because of the mentioned relative dimensions of the various described parts, a contactor 29 or 30, by the described lateral movement, enters its related groove 35 by slightly wedging apart or deforming the side opening of said groove. However, as the ring 33 is preferably formed of somewhat flexible material, a slight reverse deformation of the side opening of the groove 35 occurs after the contactor has entered said groove, thereby firmly holding the contactor against unintended lateral displacement. Also, the opposite walls defining the annular grooves 36 in the contactors 29, 30 overlie portions of the opposite faces of the ring 33 whereby the said contactors are prevented from shifting axially relatively to the ring.

In structures according to this invention, wherein the side opening of a groove 35 is not narrower than the diameter of the groove, the resiliency of the material of the ring 33 will cause the removable contactors to be held firmly against unintended lateral displacement.

As best seen by comparison of Figs. 1 and 2,, a ring 33 with one or more readily removable contactors held therein may be moved axially so that the said contactors will each extend through and be supported by one of the axially extending passages 27, 28 in the plug I8. The parts of the device are so proportioned that when the ring 33 is moved into close juxtaposition to the plug I8, all the contactors, both fixed and removable, preferably extend so that their ends come substantially within a common transverse plane located inwardly of the outer edge of the end portion ll of the shell. When the plug I8 and the ring 33, with their respective contactors, are thus brought together they are held together by a radial flange 31 of the nut I6, which overlies the end face of the ring 33.

In order to understand fully the manner in which certain contactors may readily be associated with or disassociated from the described connection plug, it may first be assumed that at the time the several wires 23 are soldered to their related fixed contactors IS, the said wires were extended through the nut I6 and the ring 33 while the two latter were temporarily disassociated from the remainder of the device. Then, after connection of the wires 20 to their related contactors, the ring 33 was moved axially along said wires into the shell and into close juxtaposition with the plug I8 after which the nut I6 was also moved along said wires and threaded onto the threaded portion I5 in order to hold all the parts of the device in assembled relationship.

Let us suppose that, with the plug and wires in the assembled condition described in the preceding paragraph, it is desired to insert two additional wires and related contactors into the plug, possibly for some special purpose. In order to readily insert such additional wires and contactors, the nut I6 is unthreaded from the portion I5 of the shell, after which said nut is slid back along the wires 20 which it encircles. Then, the ring 33 is also slid back along the wires 20 which it likewise encircles. Then, the additional wires, having previously been soldered or otherwise connected to their relatedcontactors are first passed leftwardly, as viewed in the-drawings, through nut 6 and partially through the passage 34 in the ring 33. When the annular groove 36, in the mounting portions of .a contact member then being inserted, is in-radial alignment with the ring 33, the said mounting portion is moved laterally outwardly and mapped into its proper groove 35 in-the ring 33. The same procedure is followed with an additional contactor.

After the -additional contactors are disposed firmly within the ring 33, thelatteris moved axially leftwardly so that the said contactors will extend into or through the passages 27, 28 in the plug [3. Then,the nut I6 is slid along-the wires and threaded onto the threaded portion iii of the shell-in the manneralready described. This results in-the removable contactors as well as the fixed contactors being-firmly held Within the connection'plug. "When it is desired to re-- move one ormore oi the removable contactors andtheir associated wires, it is necessary only'to pursue the reverse of the operation just described.

The ring for holding the removable contactors need not necessarily be of the form shown in Fig,- 3, but, instead, may be of a form such as illustrated in Fig. 4 wherein a ring 33a-is provided with a large opening or passage 34a for accommodating permanent or fixed wires Zlltherewithin. However, the ring 33a instead of having internal grooves 35, may be formedwith external, axially extending grooves 35a for the same purpose. The only difference in the use of the-device, when the ring-33a is employed instead of the ring 35, is that the removable contactors are snapped-into and out of the grooves 3511 from the exterior of the ring 33arather than from'the interior thereof.

When a ring such as ring 33a is employed, it is desirable to employ with it a washer 38 of dielectric material, as shown in Fig. 5, having an opening 38a for enabling all the contactors to pass therethrough and having on oneside thereof an axially extending-lip 3% which overlies the side openings of the grooves 35a thereby'prcviding'a dielectric portion to insulate the removable contactors from the shell at the point Where those members extend through i the rin "33a. The washer 38, of course, is held in its described intimate association with the ring 33 by the-lock nut l6.

The embodiment illustrated in Fig, 6 differs from those hereinbefore described chiefly in that no separate ring comparable to rings 33 or 33a is provided. Instead, a-plug 16a not only has wires 20 and related contactors fixedly associated therewith, but also'is provided with'axially extending grooves 35b having side openings at a plane peripheral face lfib of the plug for holding removable contactors 29,, 30. The removable contactors may be readily snapped into or out of the grooves 35b in the same manner as with grooves 35a in the embodiment illustrated in Fig; ii. The grooves 35bmay have transverse, arcuate grooves 40 formed therein and the mounting portionsjof the removable contactorsmaybe formed with integral radial flanges 41 which seat within the grooves 40 to prevent axial shifting of said contactors.

The embodiment of Fig. 6 includes a washer 39 of dielectric material having an opening .390. and an axially extending lip 39b which, when the device is assembled, overlies the face I81), thereby providing insulation for the removable contactors at the point where they. pass through-the plug 6 Isa. The-washer39 and the plug Illa 'arehold in their described assembled relationship within a suitable shell, by a nut such as nut l 6,

It should be apparent that when his desired to insert or remove additional contactors in the embodiment of- Fig. 6, all contactors, both fixed and removable are necessarily handled, as the plug 1811 must be removed from its'shell tomake the desired contactor changes. This may he satisfactoryin some cases and unsatisfactory other cases. Hence, the other illustrated embodiments may sometimes be preferred as=-in those embodiments, the plug lBneed not be removed in effecting contactor changes.

It should be understood also that when a lippecl washer such as washers 38 or 39 is employed,-the fit of theremovablecontactorwithin its related groove need'not be friction tight, as the parts can be so proportioned that the lip of the lippcd washer will hold the contactor firmly Within its related groove against lateral displacement. Likewise, in an inner groove arrangement as illustrated in Figs. 1-3, the fit of a removable contactorwithin its related groove need not *be friction tight as a blocking ring or other suitable barrier member may-be arranged within the ring 33' or equivalent member to function like the lips 38b, 39b to hold the contactor within its related groove against lateral displacement.

Although the present invention has been'illus trated and describedwith reference'to econ-nection plug having contact pins as male connectors, nevertheless it should be understood-that the present invention may be employed aisoin a connection plug havingcontact sleevesas female connectors. 'It should also beunderstoodthat the present inventive concept may be employed-in various connection plug structures other than those described herein and illustrated inthe accompanying drawingsand that this: invention, therefore, is not limited to such di-sclosed'and described embodiments, but is "to be considered as a breadth substantially corresponding to the following claims.

What we claim-is:

1. A multi contactor connection plugcommie ing a tubular shell, a fixed con-taster carryin plug immovably held within said shell; a removable-contactor carrying plug disposed within said shell-in end to end 'relation'to the first mentioned plug and being formed with anaxialpassage therethrough and one-or more axially extending removable-contactorholding grooves into each of which a removable contactor maybe -later;ally pressed-and be held therewithin, a centrally apertured-nut coactingwith said shell to hold the second-of said plugs within the latter, and plural fixed contactors fixedly disposed in axially-extending positions within the first mentioned plug in axial alignment with-the said passagein the second mentioned plu the mentioned plug being formed'withone ormoreaxially extending openings which, in one angularrelationship-of the two plugs; are in'axial alignment with said one or more grooves so that contactors held by said grooves may extend into the said openings.

2. A multi-contactor connection plugaccording to claim 1, further including one or more removable contaetors each having .a mounting portion formedwith a peripheral groove, the thickness of the removable contactor at said peripheral groove being substantially similar-to the'diameter of a related axially extending groove in the sec- 0nd 1 mentioned plug and the-width of said peripheral groove being only-slightlygreater than the axial dimension of the said second mentioned plug at the latters said axial groove, whereby to enable a removable contactor to be held by said second mentioned plug against displacement either laterally or axially.

3. A multi-contactor connection plug comprising a tubular shell, a first plug immovably held within said shell, a second, readily removable plug within said shell, in end to end relation to the first plug and having an axially extending opening and one or more axially extending, contactor-holding grooves formed in said second plug, plural axially extending connectors fixed to said first plug in axial alignment with said opening to permit extension of said connectors therethrough, and one or more axially extending passages in said first plug in axial alignment with said grooves, whereby connectors held within said grooves may telescope into said passages in the first plug.

4. A multi-contactor connection plug according to claim 3, the said grooves opening laterally into the said axial opening in the second plug.

5. A multi-contactor connection plug according to claim 3, further including removable connectors frictionally held Within said grooves and extending into said axial passages in the first plug; the conformations of the several removable connectors being different from each other, and the said axial passages and grooves being disposable in pairs each having conformations enabling each pair to receive only a certain one of said removable connectors.

6. A multi-contactor connection plug according to claim 3, the said groves opening laterally "3 into the outer periphery of the second plug.

7. A multi-contactor connection plug according to claim 6, the said second plug having a fiat at one peripheral portion and the grooves in said second plug opening laterally at said fiat, the device further including a washer having an axially extending insulating lip at one circumferential portion, overlying said flat and insulating the contactors in said grooves from the shell.

8. A connection plug assembly comprising a tubular shell having an outer end to which a mating connection device may be connected and an inner end through which contactors are introduced for fixed association with said assembly as a part thereof; a first, dielectric, cylindrical,

contactor-holding block fixed within said shell and having plural apertures extending axially therethrough for receiving outer ends of elongate contactors introduced axially into said shell from the latters inner end; plural elongate contactors each having an outer end portion extending with substantially accurate fit within one of said apertures, an intermediate circumferential enlargement in abutment with said first block marginally of the contactors related aperture to limit the contactors outward movement in their respective related apertures, and an inner end portion; a second, dielectric, cylindrical, contactor-holding block, readily removably disposed at the inner end of said shell in axial alignment with said first block and adjacent the latters inner end and having plural, axially extending, laterally opening slots therein through which extend the inner end portions of the contactors, portions of which slots are in alignment axially with said apertures in the first block in one angular position of the second block and marginal portions of which slots, which, when the said second block is in its said one angular position, are in-axially aligned abutting relation to the said enlargements whereby to hold the contactors against dislodgment from the first block; and a centrally apertured nut threaded upon the inner end of the shell and havinga portion coacting with the second block as a sole means for positively but readily removably holding the sec- 0nd block in its said adjacency to the inner end of the first block.

9. A connection plug assembly comprising a tubular shell having an outer. end to which a mating connection device may be connected and an inner end through which contactors are introduced for fixed association with said assembly as a part thereof; a first, dielectric, cylindrical, contactor-holding block disposed within said shell toward the outer end thereof and having plural apertures extending axially therethrough for receiving outer ends of elongate contactors introduced axially into said shell from the latters inner end; means within the shell and coacting with said first block to hold the latter against axial movement relatively to the shell; plural elongate contactors each having an outer end portion extending with substantially accurate fit within one of said apertures, an inner end portion and an intermediate circumferential enlargement in abutment with said first block marginally of the contactors related aperture to limit the contactors outward movement in said related aperture; a second, dielectric, cylindrical, contactor-holding block disposed within said shell in axial alignment with said first block and adjacent the latters inner end and being removable from said shell at the latters inner end and having plural, axially extending, laterally opening slots therein through which extend the said inner end portions of the contactors, portions of which slots are in alignment axially with said apertures in the first block in one relative angular relationship of the two blocks and marginal portions of which slots, which, when the blocks are in their said one relative angular relationship, are in axially aligned abutting relation to said enlargements whereby to hold the contactors against dislodgment from the first block; and a centrally apertured nut threaded upon the inner end of the shell and having a portion coacting with the second block as sole abutting means for positively but readily removably holding the second block within the shell in its said adjacency to the inner end of the first block.

DAVID INGALLS. JOHN WALLEN ANDERSON.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS Number Name Date 1,872,678 Chamberlain Aug. 23, 1932 1,942,586 White Jan. 9, 1934 1,974,790 Barth Sept. 25, 1934 2,095,254 Holliday et al Oct. 12, 1937 2,162,544 Benander June 13, 1939 2,182,446 Nelson Dec. 5, 1939 2,294,432 Weidner Sept. 1, 1942 2,312,002 Schmitt Feb. 23, 1943 2,383,909 Buchanan Aug. 28, 1945 2,411,861 Antony, Jr., et al Dec. 3, 1946 2,418,457 Born Apr. 8, 1947 2,419,018 Gudie Apr. 15, 1947 FOREIGN PATENTS Number Country Date 533,310 Great Britain Feb. 11, 1941 

